A day later, on October 18, Walmart kicked in $10,000 to the GOP Lincoln Club, which launched a devastating blitz of hit pieces against Nathan Fletcher — the former Republican assemblyman–turned-Democrat backed by Qualcomm billionaire Irwin Jacobs — who ended up third in the race.

The company is friendly with Republican kingpin and U-T San Diego owner Doug Manchester, whose paper has editorially favored the expansion of the chain here in the face of resistance from labor unions — backing Democratic city councilman David Alvarez in the run-off for mayor — and some neighborhood planning groups.

Manchester was also a heavy financial backer of the Lincoln Club's anti-Fletcher hit piece campaign and joined Walmart in sending contributions to the local GOP's federal campaign committee, which were subsequently routed to the local party's state committee and from there to the city-council campaigns of Republicans Lorie Zapf and Chris Cate.